It's Just Love
by Smurf2005
Summary: Mikan is now sixteen, and she has been at Alice Academy for six years. On her way to class, she bumps into Luca. How will this play out when they go visit Natsume? This was written for my birthday. One shot.


A/N: Hello all! Smurf here with a new story. And it is my birthday story! This is the third year that I am doing this. I will try to post a story on my birthday every year. So, today (Aug. 29) is my birthday. I am 25 years old today. I feel so old and the fact that my boyfriend broke up with me (go check out _Memories in the Rain _for details) makes me feel ten times older. I should probably go out dating. But, I am not good at meeting new people. Anyways, about my story, this year's theme was _Gakuen Alice._ I am a little obsessed with the Mikan and Luca pairing. I am not too big on Mikan and Natsume. I mean, Luca has loved her for a while now. I mean come on! Luca needs love, too! I am also using Luca instead of Ruca. I am going off the version of the manga that was released by TokyoPop and I am a little upset with the anime. I was not at all too happy how it ended. That was just wrong! . Also, I had Luca and Mikan trade Alice Stones in this story and I wasn't sure what color their stones were. If anyone knows, please let me know. I had Luca make his stone into the shape of a cat head to signify his Alice, and I got that idea from Tono. When he gave Mikan his Alice Stone in the 7th volume, it was in the shape of an eggplant. I thought it would be cool that Lucas would be the shape of an animal. Also, the name of the story is the name of a song that is the ending for Gundam Wing. I don't like the song. Maybe because it has Relena. I don't like her. She needs to die.

Disclaimer: I do not own _Gakuen Alice_. Tachibana Higuchi owns it. If I owned it, well... I really don't know.

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><p><span>It's Just Love<span>

"Oh no! I am so late!" sixteen year old Sakura Mikan groaned.

She was carrying her bag in one hand and a piece of bread in the other and running toward the Senior Division classrooms. It had been six years since she had entered Alice Academy, following her childhood friend, Imai Hotaru. She was busy stuffing her face as she rounded the corner toward the classes when she ran into someone.

"Itai!" Mikan said.

"Will you please get off me!" a male voice said, obviously very irritated.

"Gomen-" Mikan started before stopping when she noticed the voice. "Luca-pyon?"

"Mikan-san?"

Mikan sat up and was looking at the back of Luca's head. His hair was gleaming in the early morning sunlight. She always thought he had such pretty golden hair.

"Gomenasai, Luca-pyon," Mikan said, as Luca sat up.

"Do you need to call me by that stupid childhood nickname?" he asked.

"Why wouldn't I? You still carry a bunny around," Mikan said innocently.

She flashed him a smile and he looked away from her, blushing.

"Why aren't you in class yet?" he asked, still looking away from her.

"I woke up late," Mikan said. "Were you visiting Natsume?"

"Yeah. He looks a little better. Do you want to go with me after classes today?" Luca asked.

"I would love to!" Mikan said. "It has been a few weeks since I last saw Natsume!"

They walked side by side in silence for a couple moments, forgetting that they were supposed to be going to class.

"Mikan-san, can I ask you a question?" Luca asked.

"Sure, what is it, Luca-pyon?"

Luca was quiet for a few moments, trying to choose his words carefully. Then he shook his head and forced a smile, looking over at Mikan.

"Never mind, it's not important. I'm sure Natsume would be happy to see you!"

Mikan smiled and skipped ahead of Luca happily, not realizing the internal struggle he was having at that moment.

"Hey, Luca-pyon?" Mikan asked. "When are they planning on releasing Natsume from the hospital?"

"I don't know. They won't say."

"I don't want him to die in that hospital. Not like Kaname-senpai," Mikan said.

Luca nodded and they both remembered Kaname, the student who made puppets that could move. He was also Bears creator. He had died when Mikan was in her second year of the Junior Division. She remembered how hard it was on Tsubasa, since him and Kaname were best friends. Mikan sighed and turned around and smiled.

"Don't worry, Luca-pyon! We will find a way to save Natsume!"

"Yes. I am sure we will," Luca agreed.

As the warning bell rang, Luca and Mikan looked at each other and took off running for class. When they arrived, they were five minutes late, and they found a very angry Jinno-sensei substituting. He hit them with his Alice and made Luca and Mikan stand outside the class, each holding two buckets of water. After class was over, Mikan had to listen to Hotaru lecture her about being on time for class. Then she got hit a couple times with the Doofus Gun that Hotaru carried around just to hit Mikan with. The rest of the day passed uneventfully. The day seemed to be moving extra slowly for Mikan, and she was eager for the last bell to ring so she could go see Natsume. After the final bell, Luca and Mikan stood up quickly and left the room. They didn't want the others to know what they were doing. They didn't want to bring too many visitors to see Natsume.

"Are those bumps on your head sore, Mikan-san?" Luca asked.

Mikan touched the bumps on her head and winced slightly.

"Nah. I'll be fine," Mikan answered.

The walk to the Hospital was a quiet one. Luca and Mikan didn't talk to each other. They were too lost in their individual thoughts to pay too much to each other. When they reached Natsumes room, they saw him sitting up in bed reading one of his manga. They knocked on the door and he looked up at them.

"I see that Mikan followed you here," Natsume said, marking his spot in his book and putting it aside.

"No. I asked her to come with me," Luca said. "I thought you might like to see her since it's been awhile since you last saw her."

Natsume gave Mikan one of his rare smiles and thanked her for coming to see him. Luca stood back and watched the exchange between his two friends. He felt jealousy well up inside him as he watched Mikan fawn over Natsume. There seemed to be a moderate amount of affection between them. The entire time they were there, Luca was quiet as he watched them. There seemed to be something between them. Luca always assumed that something would happen between them. He didn't like that thought, since he had liked Mikan since they were ten. Natsume seemed to know that was something wrong.

"Luca, are you okay?" Natsume asked, looking at his childhood friend with concern.

"Wha? Yeah, I am just fine," Luca said. "I think it is time for us to leave and let you rest."

As Luca turned toward the door, he saw Natsume grab Mikan and whisper something in her ear. Once again, Luca felt the pang of jealousy. But, as he saw the look on Mikans face, it was replaced by curiosity. Mikan looked like she confused by something. They walked out of the hospital and a few minutes later, Mikan stopped and sat on a bench, still in deep thought.

"Mikan-san, can I ask you a question?" Luca asked.

"Hm? Yeah, sure," Mikan said, pulling herself out of thought.

"How do you feel about Natsume?" Luca asked.

Mikan was quiet for a moment and she remembered what Natsume had whispered into her ear before they left the hospital.

_"Luca may ask you a very odd question. I think he may ask how you feel about me. At this point, honesty is the best policy. Just don't hurt him. I do not want to see my best friend hurt," _echoed through Mikans head.

"Well, I care a lot about Natsume. I like him a lot. But-" Mikan started.

"I understand," Luca said, cutting Mikan off. "I am sure you will be very happy with him."

"What are you talking about, Luca-pyon?" Mikan asked, slightly bewildered.

"I know you are in love with Natsume. At this point, my feelings don't matter to you, so I won't get in your way."

Luca turned away from Mikan, leaving her sitting on the bench, quite baffled. She stood and ran after him. She grabbed his arm and he stopped.

"Luca-pyon, what do you mean by 'my feelings don't matter to you'?" she asked.

Luca turned to look at Mikan and reached into his pocket and pulled out a purplish-pink stone in the shape of a cat head.

"Mikan-san, do you remember when we were ten and we were chasing after Z?" Luca questioned.

Mikan nodded her head and waited for Luca to continue. He hesitated before he took a deep breath and said what was on his mind.

"There was this time by the lake, when we were talking about Alice Stones and I said I would make one for you. Not long after that, you found out that when you exchanged Alice Stones with someone, that means you will be with that person forever. Mikan-san, I want you to have my Alice Stone. I want you to have it because I love you. I have loved since we were ten. This stone is a symbol of my love for you. You do not have to give me yours. I understand if you would rather exchange stones with Natsume. You two seem like a good match."

Mikan was quiet for a few moments, looking at the stone in Lucas hand. Luca had loved her all this time. He had wanted to tell her this over the past six years. She kept a grip on his arm and with her other hand, she formed an Alice Stone. Hers was round and was completely clear.

"Luca-pyon," she started, pink patches starting to form on her cheeks. "I want to exchange Alice Stones with you."

Luca was dumbfounded. He wasn't expecting this. He assumed that Mikan would exchange stones with Natsume.

"Mikan-san, what are you doing?" he asked.

"You didn't let me finish what I was saying about Natsume. I like him a lot. But, my feelings don't extend beyond friendship. That's what I was thinking about. I was thinking about who I liked more. I didn't know if I liked you or Natsume more. However, as I thought about it, you were the one that came to mind when I imagined myself with someone. So, will you accept my Alice Stone?"

Mikan was holding the stone out for Luca. He looked at the stone and he looked at Mikan.

"I will accept yours if you accept mine," he said.

Mikan smiled and released her grip on Lucas arm. She picked up Lucas stone and placed her own in his empty hand.

"I guess that means we are a couple now, huh?" Mikan asked.

"Yes, I guess so," Luca said, placing a kiss on Mikans forehead.

All of a sudden, there was a sound and Mikan was lying on the ground, a bump forming on the back of her head.

"Dummy, why didn't you tell me that you had conflicting emotions? I could have helped you," Hotaru said, holding the Doofus Gun.

"I'm sorry, Hotaru~!" Mikan cried, jumping and running over to Hotaru.

Hotaru smiled slightly and ruffled Mikans hair.

"Let's go to Central Town to celebrate," she said.

Mikan smiled and grabbed Luca's hand and the three of them made their way to Central Town.

The End

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><p>AN: I hope you all liked my birthday story! It took me forever to write this. To be honest, I have been working on this for at least 6 months. I have been fighting writers block and a broken heart. There is a reason I don't date. I got rejected by another guy shortly after my boyfriend dumped me. That didn't turn out well. I feel stupid for getting sucked into that. Oh well, I learned my lesson. Well, so far, I have received some of my gifts for my birthday! I have gotten Volumes 2 and 3 of _Spice and Wolf_, volumes 20 and 21 of _NANA_, another manga I can't remember the name for, volume 12 of _Gakuen Alice_, a necklace and ear ring set from my grandma and a PS2 from my ex-boyfriend. Unfortunately, I am having problems with the sound on the PS2. I am working on getting that fixed. Oh! And I got my eyebrow pierced. Lol, it is currently bruised. My mom nearly flipped out after I showed. What was funny, she didn't notice at first. My hair and glasses hide it for the most part. Anywho, I hope you liked my story and I hope you read the stories my friends wrote for me. Please, read and review. As always, I accept constructive criticism, but please no flames.


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